Climate change is the most widespread & complex problem humanity has ever faced! There is no time to waste and we need to turn green talk into profound green action. This is the intention of the GREEN TIMES.

Putting the 5 Freedoms for Animals into basic education

The Five Freedoms for Animals is a set of basic principles of animal welfare that are endorsed by the World Organisation for Animal Health and form part of the United Nation’s One Health programme.

Social scientists around the world suggest that loss of empathy is at the root of our troubled and violent world.

Cambridge University’s Professor of Developmental Psychopathology Simon Baron-Cohen puts it this way: “The critical role of empathy in our society has been overlooked. Empathy is the most valuable social resource in our world and the erosion of empathy is a critical global issue of our time. Empathy must be put back on the agenda. We need to realise what a powerful resource we have at our very fingertips, if only we prioritize it.”

The building blocks of empathy are rooted in how we are taught to treat those who are at our mercy – the animals.

The Constitutional Court noted this fact in 2016 when Justice Sisi Khampepe, speaking on behalf of a full bench, stated: “Animal protection safeguards the moral status of humans and the degeneration of human values.”

We must not think that learners in the Foundation Phase are too young to understand the Five Freedoms.

Watch this class of nine-year-olds presenting the Five Freedoms Dog Puppet Show with full understanding of the issues:

Most importantly, a follow-up survey showed that the learners spontaneously extended their understanding of the Five Freedoms to all animals.

If you agree that the Five Freedoms for Animals is critical to the development of integrity, empathy and good citizenship and is an essential pedagogical component of Early Childhood Development, please sign the petition.

Water is our most important resource yet the facts are simple: the world’s water is in crisis. This is why the next LCA Spark Talks live event will tackle one of the most important yet complex environmental elements – fresh water. Live on stage on 9 March 2019, a number of speakers will share th... ... See more